These days, TikTok and Instagram are some of the main ways tattoo artists, piercers, and similar professionals market their work. To do that, they usually rely on real footage of real clients.
But that can get complicated once a video takes off.
In a recent TikTok, piercer Ana (@anamarpiercing) shared a situation she says she’s never dealt with before.
Her video, which has garnered over 33,200 views, explains what happened after one of her client videos went viral.
Client Asks For Video To Be Taken Down
“I have a situation going on… this has never happened to me with any client,” she says.
According to Ana, she posted a video of a client that ended up getting a lot of attention online.
“This client called me asking me to remove the video,” she says.
The issue wasn’t the content itself, but the reaction to it. “Some people are being very rude… very hateful comments,” she explains.
As the video gained traction, the client began seeing those comments and wasn’t comfortable with the attention.
“She just texted me and said, ‘Hey, can you remove my video?’” Ana says.
She adds that her original intention wasn’t to create any kind of conflict.
“The purpose of my video was to guide people and help them… not to cause any confrontation,” she says. “People are rude… most people are rude.”
She asks viewers for advice. “What would you do? Should I remove the video or leave it?” she says.
It’s not clear which specific video she’s referring to, but her page includes several posts where she discusses piercings that weren’t properly cared for or had issues, which often leads to critical comments about the client.
“You can’t control what others comment online,” she wrote in the caption.
Commenters Say To Take It Down
In the comments, most people leaned toward removing the video.
“If you didn’t have her sign a model release then you should take it down. If she signed a release then it’s your content to decide,” one person wrote. “Either way I would honor your clients feelings and remove it.”
“This is a hard situation… no one deserves hate online,” another added. “My opinion is, take it down.”
“Remove the video. Save yourself the stress and her stress,” a third said.
How Filming Clients Works For Piercers
In situations like this, there’s both a legal and a business side to consider.
In Florida, where Ana’s business operates, recording people legally requires their knowledge and consent. Because of that, many salons and studios include waivers that allow filming and the use of client footage for marketing.
That likely means Ana had the legal right to post the video.
From a business standpoint, however, keeping a viral video up while a client is uncomfortable can create problems. Negative reviews or word-of-mouth backlash can outweigh whatever exposure the post brings.
Similar situations have come up in other industries. One photographer described on Reddit how a model asked for their photos to be removed, even after signing a release.
In that case, commenters mostly agreed it’s a better idea to remove it. “Bad reviews don’t care about contracts,” one wrote.
@anamarpiercing You can’t control what others comment online 😠😔 #piercing #viralvideo #piercings#piercer #trouble
BroBible has reached out to Ana via email for comment and additional information.